Three days?

How can one participate in real combat in just three days?

Everyone shook their heads upon hearing this.

Although Sun Mengyao is best at playing the zither, her chess skills are not bad either. Perhaps she can't compare with the masters, but dealing with novices is a piece of cake for her.

Your Majesty is destined to lose this round.

Shen Qingcheng looked at Gu An's confident demeanor, seemingly lost in thought, and remained silent.

On the field, Shen Jiao remained calm and composed, placing another black piece without a second thought.

Sun Mengyao clenched her fist, holding the white piece between her two fingers, hesitating to place it on the board, seemingly unsure of what she was hesitating for, and fine beads of cold sweat appeared on her forehead.

"My goodness, have you noticed something? No matter how long Sun Mengyao thinks, the Empress always places her chess piece in an instant!"

"Amazing! Your Majesty's reaction is incredibly quick!"

"Too slow! Sun Mengyao is so slow! Is she asleep? Can you hurry up?!"

"Hahaha... Everyone, hahaha everyone, look at His Majesty's expression, hahaha... Is he worried that His Majesty has encountered such a pig-headed opponent!"

Sun Mengyao couldn't hear the discussions in the audience. She tried to think, but Shen Jiao's calm demeanor made her anxious.

Should I go here? Or here? Or somewhere else?

No, no, no, none of that seems right.

The other party patiently persuaded her, leaving her with nowhere to turn.

"Your Majesty was sitting there, and Mengyao was too nervous and didn't show her true strength." Shen Yu's tone was indifferent, but from an angle unseen by outsiders, she tightly clenched her handkerchief.

Murong You sneered, "Being less skilled is being less skilled. How could you play so badly if you were too nervous? Why weren't the others nervous? I think her mind wasn't on the competition at all. It's a shame you have the nerve to come up with such a lame excuse."

Why is the Ninth Princess here again? Shen Yu's face immediately turned bright red, tears welling up in her eyes, and she said, "Meng Yao is my friend, I know her, Ninth Princess, why... why do you have to say such things?"

"What did I say?" Murong You retorted aggressively.

Just as she was about to show off her skills and teach Shen Yu a lesson, a peacemaker's voice suddenly rang out from behind her: "Xiao Jiu, don't bully people."

Murong You frowned and glared angrily at the newcomer: "Bullying people? Bullying people? I didn't bully anyone! Annoying, Fifth Brother! Why did you call me again? I didn't say anything wrong. All she does is cry, so hypocritical!"

Murong Chen shook her head and said, "You."

Murong You disliked Shen Yu, and now she also disliked Murong Chen, who spoke up for Shen Yu. She thought that although she could see the Empress's face from here, the feng shui was really bad!

Unwilling to argue with Murong Chen over an outsider, she called her remaining followers and turned to leave.

Seeing this, Murong sighed and said, "This child is spoiled... Miss Yu'er, please don't mind him."

Shen Yu bit her lower lip: "Yu'er doesn't blame the Ninth Princess."

Murong Chen said with satisfaction, "You're quite sensible. Hey? Why is your skirt wet? It's cold, you're prone to catching a cold. Go change quickly."

Shen Yu then noticed the large stain on the hem of her skirt, which must have been accidentally spilled by Murong You when she knocked over a teacup.

"Oh? But...but I didn't bring...more clothes." She blushed.

Generally speaking, noble ladies would prepare two or three sets of clothes before going out in case of emergencies. For example, Murong You's maids prepared at least a dozen sets of clothes for her.

A hint of inquiry flashed in Murong Chen's eyes, "Miss Yu'er, are you sure?"

The man wasn't some clueless teenager; when his sharp eyes stared at her, she didn't panic. His maturity made Chen Yu incredibly nervous.

She wanted to back down, but took a deep breath and took Murong Chen's hands in her own.

"Yes, Your Highness. My master isn't here either, and I really can't find anyone else to help me."

Cai Qinshi was so angry that morning from the starkly different performances of Shen Jiao and Shen Yu that she went back to the inn to rest early.

Murong Chen's eyes showed understanding, and he suddenly smiled: "In that case, Miss Yu'er, please come with me to change your clothes."

...

At the same time, the black piece landed, and cheers erupted from the crowd.

Shen Jiao smiled faintly: "Miss Sun, you've lost."

"Impossible! You cheated! Let's try again!"

Sun Mengyao was incredulous and went berserk, wanting to sabotage the game.

But how could she let her succeed? Before the little eunuch could react, Ji Yan flicked her two fingers, and a chess piece flew out, freezing her in place.

Sun Mengyao was frozen in her ugliest expression and posture, and Shen Jiao almost burst out laughing, but fortunately she held it in.

She feigned composure and said, "One game decides the winner, that's the rule. Goodbye, Miss Sun."

"You won! Your Majesty won again! Who was it that said Your Majesty would lose? Come out and prove them wrong!"

The crowd erupted in excitement once again.

"How long has it been? It's an absolute crushing defeat!"

"If Sun Mengyao hadn't been so slow and indecisive, she could have been even faster! Your Majesty! Your Majesty! You are my god!"

"Speaking of which, I have a bold question. Your Majesty is clearly so capable, so why was she rumored to be a good-for-nothing who couldn't do anything in music, chess, calligraphy, or painting?"

The group looked at each other in bewilderment.

"Yeah, yeah, who spread this rumor?"

"Isn't it Chenyu?" a voice suddenly said from the crowd.

Shen Yu's reputation has recently become as rotten as a stinking pumpkin. When everyone heard this, they all felt that it made perfect sense and began to condemn Shen Yu and seek justice for the Empress.

"Is it really her?" Gu An leaned closer to Shen Qingfeng and offered to share the peeled melon seeds.

Shen Qingfeng showed no mercy, grabbing a handful and stuffing it into his mouth: "I don't know."

Gu An glanced at him: "If you don't know, why did you say it was her?"

Shen Qingfeng spread his hands innocently: "Who cares if it is or not? Does it matter? Hasn't she slandered the Empress enough? Even if it wasn't her, she can't escape the connection."

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